This is a film that really fails in delivering anything substantial to it's themes. But where it fails in the grand scheme of things, it works masterfully when depicting small, singular events of alienation through electronic communication. Togetherness through loneliness rarely feels as stark and real as it does through this film. But whether that is an actual achievement or not, I don't know. I feel as if maybe that's an easy thing to pull off. The real points of disgust I have though are with the crude, poorly written caricatures some of the good actors are tacked with. In the end we're equating the human condition to keylogging and social media. This comparison feels more pointless than our existence. So I guess I was a tad disappointed. I love Reitman's work. This goes to his mediocre films, along with Thank You for Smoking.

Cold in July sure is one 80s-ass 80s pastiche about the 80s. The score is so fantastical and robust, but darn, this movie is all over the place that the score just accentuates the problem. Basically we have a PTSD-drama, horror film, action film, vigilante film, exploitation and film noir shoved into an extremely 80s mise en scene. When it works, it's exceptional; the wonderfully cut together sequence in Michael C. Hall's house where the cops outside and inside try to find a criminal. But then we have stuff like people hanging out at a ranch and... people hanging out at a ranch. I'll say though, this is one of the best performances in Don Johnson's career.

Two things Joe Swanberg's Happy Christmas does exceptionally well: 1) It explores the idiosynchrasies of language that pop up in our everyday lives nowadays – what we want to say, and what we really say. 2) It provides plentiful video footage that Swanberg's baby really is incredibly adorable.

Though the overall film is lacking, there is one.. strength, I guess, in Jessabelle; Robert Ben Garants screenplay is goddamn insane. I don't necessarily mean that in the best way either. Everything that would make this movie good is absent; the screenplay lacks a distinct throughline, the mystery is trash, and nothing that takes place is particularly engaging. But holy shit, the dumb plotline is so chock-full of throwbacks, hints at the future and incredibly asinine but plentiful texture put to the miscellaneous characters. A lot of effort clearly went into it. Everything just went to all the wrong parts.

I truly need to rewatch Seven Samurai at some point this year; it's been ages.

The only other movie I've seen here (up to this point in your journal) is Dangerous Minds which is, save for Pfeiffer's performance, unremarkable. I recall an abundance of similar films offered up when I first watched it and, while I found this one decently average, there were certainly better ones. Stand and Deliver with Edward James Olmos comes to mind.

I'll have to add About Time to the watchlist and I'm still debating whether or not to watch the Carrie remake. It's only mild curiosity for me as it's one of my least favorite King stories but maybe.